Sports
GCL: Carlsen scores ‘massive’ win over Anand to put Warriors in lead
Cometh the hour, cometh the man. Two days after Magnus Carlsen told the media in Dubai he is still the best in the world with no one to beat him, he proved it by example in the ongoing Global Chess League.
The icon player for SG Alpine Warriors kept the pressure on leaders Ganges Grandmasters by a morale-lifting victory and a historic clash with counterpart Vishwanathan Anand at Le Meridien hotel on Wednesday. A huge turnout at Le Meridien got what they came for as Carlsen, playing with black, overturned the tables in a memorable endgame.
Ganges Grandmasters took the lead but, thanks to the unstoppable Warriors prodigy Praggnanandhaa R, the team managed to strike back in a critical moment. In what turned out to be the endgame for the history books, which saw two queens promoted by White and a knight promoted by Black, Carlsen managed to win 10-8 as Warriors displaced the Grandmasters on the leaderboard as both sides look headed to the final as well.
In the other game, Balan Alaskan Knights also scored a timely 8-5 win over upGrad Mumba Masters to inch up a spot from their fifth place at the start of the day.
Following the French defence, a sharp position developed on the board. In positional readjusting, both were pushing, creating traps for each other. With seconds on the clock, Carlsen had to calculate the complicated path to victory which saw White promoting his pawn to a queen twice. In the end, Anand thought he found a way to a stalemate but instead of promoting a queen, Carlsen took out a knight – an unusual choice by all standards – but just what was needed for victory.
“I did not know the score but, judging from what I’d seen before, I thought I had to win,” Carlsen said. “It’s looking pretty good now. It’s pretty massive, we’ve got to keep it going. We have played with five blacks in a row, won four of them. But now the mentality changes; a draw will not be enough.”
A disappointed Anand acknowledged the genius of Carlsen. “I spoiled the endgame in the end. He’s really good at this,” said the former five-time world champion from India.
Teams rise, teams fall, and the battle for supremacy takes on a whole new dimension.@SGAlpineWarrior @GangesGMs @umumba @balanalaskank @gulf_titans @trivenickings #GlobalChessLeague #GCL #TheBigMove #GCLonJioCinema
— Tech Mahindra Global Chess League (@GCLlive) June 28, 2023
For a long time in the match, neither side had the upper hand. The first to make a breakthrough was Ganges’ Richard Rapport. In the Italian game, Gukesh D allowed Rapport to take more space and orchestrate an attack on the black king from which there was no escape. With another game ending in a draw – between Arjun Erigaisi and Leinier Dominguez – the Ganges Grandmasters took the lead.
The next game to finish was between Hou Yifan – the world’s top-rated woman player – who defeated the eight-time American women’s champion, Irina Krush. In a tense position, Krush made a blunder allowing White to easily mate her king.
A glimmer of hope for Warriors came from Praggnanandhaa – so far the most successful player in the tournament with six wins and a draw – who proved his value again, defeating Andrey Esipenko as Black.
As Elisabeth Paehtz ended in a drawn position with Bella Khotenashvili, everything depended on the outcome of the game between Carlsen and Anand. “This is a game for the history books. The titans of chess fighting it out until the end”, said Grandmaster Peter Svidler.
Balan Alaskan Knights v upGrad Mumba Masters (8:5)
Knights, who won the first round against the Masters 14:5, started with the advantage of playing with white. Icon player Ian Nepomniachtchi went for the Sicilian Rossolimo against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Both the Indian women’s Grandmasters, Koneru Humpy and Harika Dronavalli, also came under opening pressure straightaway.
The Knights’ started the day in fifth position but in the individual race for the most valuable players, they had two players, Tan Zhongyi and Nodirbek Abdusattorov, in good form and in the top six, just behind the Masters’ Harika Dronavalli in fourth.
By the time the dust settled on the opening moves, Humpy was in a disadvantageous position against Zhongyi although the latter had used up more time for her attack. On board one, the icon players settled for a draw, just as Teimour Radjabov and Vidit Gujrathi on the third table.
Meanwhile, a patient Humpy made calculated moves to fight back and Zhongyi also misplayed at a crucial juncture as Humpy bailed out. Dronavalli also held off the initial onslaught from Nino Batsiashvili to split the point.
All hopes rested on board six, where Knights prodigy Raunak Sadhwani pressed his advantage with white Javokhir Sindarov with the time clock also in the favour of the young 17-year-old from Nagpur. The endgame saw some nervous shaking of feet before Sadhwani enforced a win and expressed his delight by throwing his hands in the air.
In the last game to finish, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, in white, was in a tight tug of war with Alexander Grischuk for most of their clash. Abdusattorov then managed to hold fort, thus paving way for an important 8-5 win for the Knights.
Raunak Sadhwani scored an important win for Balan Alaskan Knights.
Indian chess star Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu produced a brilliant final-round victory to win Norway Chess 2026, capping a dramatic finish to one of the year’s most prestigious tournaments.
Entering the final day half a point behind leader Wesley So, Praggnanandhaa knew only a win would give him a realistic chance of claiming the title. The 19-year-old delivered under pressure, defeating Vincent Keymer with the white pieces to secure the full three points and surge to first place.
The victory lifted Praggnanandhaa to 18 points, enough to overtake Wesley So and clinch the Norway Chess crown in Oslo.
So, who had led the standings heading into the final round, drew his classical game against Alireza Firouzja before winning the Armageddon tiebreak. However, the extra points were not enough to keep him ahead of the charging Indian grandmaster.
Firouzja completed a strong campaign to finish third overall.
Elsewhere, world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen signed off in style with a classical victory over reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju, delighting home fans with a final-round win.
Final Standings
- Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu – 18 points
- Wesley So – 17 points
- Alireza Firouzja – 15.5 points
Assaubayeva dominates women’s event
In the Norway Chess Women’s tournament, Bibisara Assaubayeva completed a dominant campaign to secure the title after having already wrapped up first place with a round to spare.
The final day featured three decisive classical games, eliminating the need for Armageddon tiebreaks.
Women’s world champion Ju Wenjun handed Assaubayeva her first classical defeat of the tournament, while Zhu Jiner defeated Humpy Koneru to secure second place overall. Anna Muzychuk also ended her campaign on a high note with a victory over Divya Deshmukh to finish third.
Norway Chess women’s final standings
- Bibisara Assaubayeva – 16.5 points
- Zhu Jiner – 16 points
- Anna Muzychuk – 15 points
Praggnanandhaa’s triumph marks another major milestone in the young Indian grandmaster’s rapidly rising career and further strengthens India’s growing influence at the highest level of world chess.
The battle for the Norway Chess 2026 title is set for a thrilling finish after a dramatic Round 9 left three players firmly in contention heading into the final day in Oslo.
Tournament leader Wesley So maintained his narrow advantage after drawing his classical game against Magnus Carlsen before winning the Armageddon tiebreak to secure valuable extra points.
The standout result of the day came from Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, who defeated reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju with the black pieces. The victory earned Praggnanandhaa three points and moved him to within half a point of the tournament lead.
Meanwhile, Alireza Firouzja kept his championship hopes alive by overcoming Vincent Keymer in Armageddon after their classical game ended in a draw.
With one round remaining, Wesley So leads the standings on 15.5 points, followed by Praggnanandhaa on 15 points and Firouzja on 14.5 points, setting up a nail-biting conclusion to the tournament.
Assaubayeva seals women’s title
In the women’s competition, Bibisara Assaubayeva secured the Norway Chess Women 2026 title with a round to spare.
Assaubayeva drew her classical game against Anna Muzychuk, who later claimed the Armageddon win. However, the result was enough to guarantee Assaubayeva an unassailable lead at the top of the standings.
The only decisive classical result in the women’s event came from Zhu Jiner, who defeated Divya Deshmukh to move into second place.
Elsewhere, Humpy Koneru and Ju Wenjun drew their classical encounter before Ju Wenjun claimed the Armageddon victory.
After Round 9, Assaubayeva tops the women’s standings with 16.5 points, ahead of Zhu Jiner on 13 points and Anna Muzychuk on 12 points.
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